Pre-Engineering students are building VEX robotic vehicles.

SCHNECKSVILLE, Pa. — Students in Lehigh Career & Technical Institute’s Pre-Engineering & Engineering Technology program are spending Manufacturing Month designing and building VEX robotic vehicles.

Later this year, Pre-Engineering teacher Catherine Tomkiel plans to set up a track that each of their vehicles will navigate. The vehicles’ laps around the track will be timed and compared to see which one is the fastest, she said.

William Allen High School’s Jaise Chan, Emmaus High School’s Matthew Atkinson and Southern Lehigh High School’s Jackson Laverty teamed up to create a robotic car with all-wheel drive. After a lot of trial and error — the boys are on their third prototype — they’re hopeful the latest iteration has enough power and turning precision to edge out the competition.

Tyler Wogenrich, another Allen student, designed his vehicle with tracked treads rather than wheels. He struggled with torque and speed early on, but troubleshooting helped him turn that around; he’s excited to see if his vehicle will hold its own against other competitors.

Happy Manufacturing Month! This is how we innovate!

Lehigh Career & Technical Institute has seven Engineering & Advanced Manufacturing programs for high school students:

• Automated Industrial Technology

• Electronics Technology

• Engineering Drafting & Design

• Precision Machine Tool Technology

• Pre-Engineering & Engineering Technology

• Supply Chain Management & Logistics Technology

• Welding Technology